On This Day 4th February 2017
The trouble with a manager getting a touchline ban is usually means that they end up sitting with the plebs...that us us supporters! And that can be an uncomfortable experience as Arsène Wenger found out when sitting with the paying spectators at Stamford Bridge during a four-match touchline ban received at the start of 2017 for abusing a fourth official. The Arsenal manager sat next to an Arsenal fan who was his gardener - but the Frenchman had no idea who he was! “But I do have a big garden..." was Wenger's get-out clause!
Former Arsenal midfielder Henri Lansbury, once tipped for stardom by Arsene Wenger and who had played 8 times for The Gunners, successfully transitioned into a new career as a gardener and entrepreneur after retiring in 2023, during the "Pandemic", aged 32.
His products have not only hit the shelves at Homebase but also returned him to familiar turf, treating the grounds he once graced as a youth at Arsenal's Hale End academy. He founded "Grass Gains", an organic lawn fertilizer company, and has supplied products to professional football clubs, while also creating specialized, striped turf.Lansbury developed a passion for lawn care during the COVID-19 lockdown. His company, Grass Gains, achieved significant success, with products stocked in Homebase. He has tended to the pitches at Arsenal's Hale End academy, the same facility where he trained as a young player under Wenger.
Post-Football Life: After retiring at 32, following a promotion-winning stint with Luton Town, he committed full-time to his turf business.Lansbury has stated his goal is to help local clubs improve their pitches, enjoying the process of creating high-quality, striped surfaces.
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